February 26th – Prefectural Examination.
The Prefectural Examination consisted of two sessions: the Formal Examination and the Retest. The Formal Examination covered Classics Interpretation, Policy Essay, and Prescribed Poem, while the Retest covered the same scope with different questions, serving as further screening for candidates.
Participants included Child Students who had passed the Prefectural Examination, Students of the Imperial Academy, and candidates from regions like Zhili.
He Yunzhao understood one principle well: exams required advance preparation. Since the exam venue was somewhat far from the He residence, she had arranged in advance to rent a small courtyard nearby for the exam.
Anyone who had taken the gaokao knew how crucial it was to have a hotel close by!
Cuiling had gone five days early with others to tidy up and prepare everything thoroughly.
Thus, early in the morning, He Yunzhao could leisurely eat her usual breakfast. She drank a bowl of warm bird's nest porridge and, feeling cozy, picked up her exam bag to head to the exam.
Clearly, those from well-off families had made ample preparations.
Mu Yan wore a thick black fur coat that was slightly ill-fitting. He explained, "For warmth."
Unexpectedly, she spotted someone in the crowd—Xiao Changfeng.
He Yunzhao glanced at him but said nothing. Yet, the person had already approached.
The tall, athletic young man wore thin clothing in winter, seemingly unbothered by the cold. Xiao Changfeng stepped closer, bowed slightly, and said softly, "Martial Aunt."
He Yunzhao nodded somewhat awkwardly. Xiao Changfeng was the grandson of her master, Ding Hanzhang. Though not related by blood, by etiquette, he should address her as martial aunt.
Xiao Changfeng didn't seem particularly awkward. After greeting her naturally, he stood there without moving.
For a moment, the three fell silent, standing like statues. Mu Yan stealthily peeked at them but was caught by Xiao Changfeng's icy glare, quickly pulling his head back.
Xiao Changfeng and He Yunzhao were born in the same year, but by seniority, he was a generation younger. Not being very familiar with him, Mu Yan truly didn't know how to break the silence.
The air nearly froze. Xiao Changfeng's eyes showed regret—he had messed up again.
With a loud clang! An official struck the gong. "Enter the hall!"
As the crowd surged toward the entrance like a flowing stream, He Yunzhao instinctively turned to Xiao Changfeng before moving her feet and said cheerfully, "We're going in."
"Wishing Martial Aunt success…"
She and Mu Yan had walked over a dozen steps when she realized Xiao Changfeng was no longer beside them. Puzzled, she turned back and saw him still standing in the same spot.
Was he not here to take the exam? Right, she hadn't heard of Xiao Changfeng passing the Child Student exam.
But… He Yunzhao's mind retained the image of the surging crowd, with only the silent young man remaining in place, like some out-of-school children peering through school gates at students heading to class, eyes full of envy.
She shook her head, dispelling the thought, and took off her outer garment for inspection.
Starting from the Prefectural Examination, officials no longer conducted body searches, using only a ruler for a general check to preserve the dignity of scholars.
By this stage, most candidates likely to smuggle notes had already been filtered out. For those like Students of the Imperial Academy who could take the Prefectural Examination without the Child Student qualification, the title of Cultivated Talent meant little to scions of official families.
During the inspection, someone suddenly buckled under pressure and began vomiting violently. Nearby candidates stepped away in disgust, and He Yunzhao avoided the area as well.
He Yunzhao entered the Examination Hall clutching her bag, a smile unconsciously spreading across her face. Starting public exams at the age of taking the zhongkao—how many detours had she avoided!
Xiao Changfeng watched from behind—this little martial uncle… and his friend.
To him, these two appeared small and delicate, like two precious lion cats huddling close together, laughing and playing as their intertwined tails scampered forward.
A stray cat like him wasn’t fit to play with house cats. Getting too close would only invite disdain.
His hanging hands clenched tightly, veins bulging. These hands were large and powerful, capable of crushing a person’s throat. He was far from as placid as he appeared.
As he turned, brushing past someone, a short blade flew from his sleeve. Without changing expression, Xiao Changfeng seized the wrist and twisted it back.
The youth in thin black clothes vanished into the crowd in the blink of an eye, leaving only a pool of foul-smelling blood. After being run over by cart wheels several times, it blended into the mud, indistinguishable.
“Who’s so wretched? Splashing water all over the road!”
……
Examination Hall.
He Yunzhao took her assigned seat according to the name list. The Prefectural Examination was held at an Examination Hall in the southwest of the capital.
The exam booths resembled public toilets—semi-open spaces of about two square meters, with a nearly 1.5-meter-long wooden board fixed to the wall in front. One only needed to slide it horizontally to remove it from the grooves on either side.
The Formal Examination lasted a full day, so she had packed two meals in advance.
He Yunzhao first took out the charcoal from her bag, lit a small stove, and waited for the water to boil while wiping clean the chair and the wooden board that served as her desk.
Leaning over the board, she examined it carefully. There was a small hole in the middle of the left side—she made a mental note to avoid placing her answer sheet there later, lest it tear while she was writing. That would be disastrous.
Her position was just right: Booth B-17, a sheltered spot away from the wind and, more importantly, far from the Stinky Booth.
The Stinky Booth referred to seats near the latrine. With at least two hundred candidates in the hall and six to seventy people sharing a single latrine, the stench was unimaginable. The scholars in the five or six booths closest to it looked ashen-faced, clearly aware that their names would not make the list.
He Yunzhao glanced at the candidates in the opposite row. Interestingly, several scholars she recognized had been assigned favorable positions.
A thought struck her: the frequent Literary Gatherings held earlier might have been for this very purpose. Local education was part of an official’s administrative performance, and it would be a pity if renowned scholars performed poorly due to being assigned a Stinky Booth and missed the rankings this year.
She chuckled softly and shook her head. No wonder everyone vied for reputation—those who ranked first were unlikely to be easily eliminated, weren’t they?
The exam booth carried a faint scent of dust. Fortunately, they were in the capital. In regions like Jiangnan, who knew what strange critters might emerge from the dilapidated Examination Halls?
Boom! Boom! Boom! The copper gongs sounded again.
He Yunzhao sat upright, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath—inhaling slowly, exhaling gradually. In the silence, she could hear her own heartbeat.
Gradually, the tension, excitement, fear, and anticipation gripping her heart were kneaded like dough and stuffed into her chest, leaving only a smooth surface.
“Booth Seventeen, answer sheet.”
He Yunzhao opened her eyes calmly, all expression wiped from her face. “Thank you.”
During the exam, each candidate wasn’t given a printed question paper. Instead, a question placard was displayed, bearing the exam prompts.
The Formal Examination consisted of three tasks: two essays on the Four Books and one Prescribed Poem, to be completed before sunset.
When the placard was unveiled, many couldn’t help but hold their breath. The questions—they were difficult!
The chief examiner was Jiang Jinghuai, a native of Zhili. Earlier, Elder Ding Hanzhang had attempted to analyze him, concluding that he was a typical northern official. Given his role as chief examiner, the questions might be straightforward.
Many had received this news. As a Zhili native, Jiang Jinghuai was well-known to those familiar with him. No one expected him to defy conventions.
It was like preparing to steal a gem, only to be told by a nine-headed serpent at the doorstep: "Go defeat Sun Wukong and the monk Tang Sanzang and his disciples."
The first Classics Interpretation question: "Hexagram 64, Line 4: Walking centrally alone, one returns."The second: "The Way of the Great Learning lies in illuminating illustrious virtue."
The first question was extremely challenging—a topic from the Book of Changes. The line position at □□ signifies maintaining centrality and correctness while returning alone. The Image Commentary states that doing so aligns with the righteous path.
After brief reflection, He Yunzhao decided to elaborate from three perspectives. First, on an official’s personal cultivation: upholding integrity, refusing to compromise with corruption, and constantly reflecting on one’s righteousness.Second, in governance: officials must adhere to the right path and make sound decisions.Third, connecting it to the Doctrine of the Mean: "The virtue of the mean—is it not supreme?"
She first drafted a rough outline on scrap paper, pondered for a moment, then lifted her wrist to write. Her characters were neat, strokes fluid, striving to maintain an overall dignified appearance…
By the time she finished this question, it was nearly noon. She noticed some examinees across the way had already started cooking, but she wasn’t hungry yet. She decided to draft the second question before eating.
For lunch, she ate thin wheat cakes from her bag with beef jerky, sprinkled with a pinch of salt. He Yunzhao took a warm bite and thought, Huh? Why does this taste so much like a Mongolian breakfast?
The flavor was quite good. He Yunzhao was generally easy to please with food, though she tended to grow bored of things—no matter how delicious, a few repetitions would dull her interest.Now, exhausted from answering questions, her mind foggy, she found this meal exceptionally satisfying.
After eating, she seized the momentum to tackle the second question."The Way of the Great Learning lies in illuminating illustrious virtue, in renovating the people, in abiding in the highest good…"
Finally, the Prescribed Poem. He Yunzhao felt relieved at the sight—while the two prose questions were difficult, the poem was comparatively simpler.Even if a modern person could memorize all ancient poetry, passing the Presented Scholar exams was no easy feat. Prescribed Poems were highly specific.
This year’s theme was "Composing on the Lush Grass of the Plains."The task: write a five-character, eight-rhyme poem about grass.
After a moment’s thought, He Yunzhao smiled—this was perfect.Composing on the Grass of the Ancient Plain at Parting"Lush grasses on the plain, / Wither and flourish each year. / Wildfires cannot burn them out; / Spring winds blow them to life again. / Fragrant distant paths invade ancient roads, / Sunlit emerald meets barren walls. / Again I see my friend depart; / Luxuriant grasses veil parting sorrow."
Chief Examiner Jiang Jinghuai disliked patrolling the examination halls early. As a former examinee himself, he knew that typically, little substantial work was produced in the morning. It was only by the afternoon, during the second question, that breakthroughs occurred. Thus, he waited until after lunch to make his rounds.
A famous saying came to mind: A striking person stands out in high definition from afar. From a distance, He Yunzhao was the only one with clearly defined features. Amid the surrounding candidates, she made her examination cell seem even more spacious.
Though He Yunzhao had finished writing, she meticulously reviewed her two essays for any oversights.
When Jiang Jinghuai reached her cell, he frowned at the candidate’s exceptionally striking appearance. He deliberately altered his path to avoid looking, but curiosity ultimately got the better of him.
He happened to be reading He Yunzhao's first essay. At a glance, he thought, "Hmm?"
The opening argument was exceptionally well-crafted, the writing flowed elegantly, and the logical structure was clear. There was even a subtle sense of practiced familiarity, as if the candidate had taken the exams many times before. He glanced down at the examinee—so young, yet already so seasoned.
Since the Prescribed Poem section was straightforward, he didn't pay it much attention, having already formed an estimation of He Yunzhao's ranking in his mind.
By sunset, as the candidates filed out of the examination hall, the graders began reviewing the papers. When he saw He Yunzhao's complete answers,
Jiang Jinghuai fell silent for a long while. Finally, he sighed and said, "This candidate deserves first place."